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Websleuths News

On the latest edition of Websleuths Radio we tackle the Rebecca Zahau murder case and the big mistake made in the autopsy report of the Las Vegas shooter.
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Know of any more missing girls of the 1950s?

I'm the "instigator" in the reopening of the Boulder Jane Doe case. (See the tread on BJD, which is a continuation of Unidentified Girl, Boulder CO, 8 April 1954). We need your help in finding more leads of missing girls and young women from the 1950s! DNA has ruled out Twylia May Embrey and Marion Joan McDowell, and dental records have ruled out Connie Smith. Of course there are more girls/young women of this era on the Doe Network, but so far none close to the 8 April 1954 date that BJD was found, and none that have a connection to Colorado. Please send names and circumstances of any missing young women you can think of who could possibly be BJD. According to the original autopsy report, she was 5'3" or 5'4", 100 to 110 pounds, had light brown (almost blonde) hair, perfect teeth, and an appendectomy scar. Thank you!

1950's Missing Person Cases...

... According to the original autopsy report, she was 5'3" or 5'4", 100 to 110 pounds, had light brown (almost blonde) hair, perfect teeth, and an appendectomy scar. Thank you!

Do you know what her Blood Type was? That is another possible identifying feature that could have been known about missing girls back then.

Unfortunately, back in the 1950's, missing persons cases did not receive any where near the national coverage and press that they do today. It was often only local news and one has to go through microfilm and bound copies of old newspapers page by page to come up with such stories. Then, when such a story is found you have to continue looking through later papers to see if that missing person ever turned up.

The same is true of a lot of Unidentified John and Jane Does. Sometimes, however, you can find the Does in Coroner Inquest records.

Arizona Girl

Originally Posted by Hollow

Hi!!! I found in in The Oklahoman dated August 21st 1957

It says:

Phoenix, Ariz, Aug 20 (UP)-City police reported Tuesday they have found no trace of a missing 14-year-old Phoenix girl, who left home August 15.
Jeannette Frances Branson, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Virgil Bond, was last seen clad in a sheath dress, wearing high heels and carrying a bathing suit. She gave no indication of where she was going, police said. Her parents said she had no apparent reason for leaving.
The family had moved to Phoenix from Tuscon, Ariz. only three days before.
Jeannette is described as 5 feet, 8 inches tall, 120 pounds, with dark brown hair.

Hollow posted this on the Connie Smith thread and I thought it was of interest here. I did contact the Phoenix PD who said they did not have Jeannette Frances Branson listed as missing. I am not sure I trust that information as I have found many LE departments "purge" their records after ten years or so.

My understanding was that Stephanie Bryan's body was found. She disappeared on her way home from school in Oakland CA in April of 1955. In July of the same year, a local woman called Georgia Abbott found Stephanie's purse and ID in her basement and called the police. A further search revealed some school books, glasses and clothing that had belonged to the young girl hidden elsewhere in the basement. Georgia's husband Burton was the obvious suspect, and eventually, Stephanie's body was found in a shallow grave at the Abbotts' weekend cabin. (That is the name of the book you mentioned, Hollow - Shallow Grave in Trinity County, by Harry Farrell). Police also found hair and other evidence linked to Stephanie in Abbott's car. Burton Abbott was found guilty and executed for the murder. Some people have said that there was not enough proof that he actually did the murder, but if he didn't, someone sure went to a lot of trouble to set him up.